Cloud Security Alliance Releases Updates to ‘The Treacherous 12: Cloud Computing Top Threats in 2016’

Updates Extend Real-World Examples to Align with Top Security Threats

SEATTLE, WA – October 20, 2017 – The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today announced an updated ‘Treacherous 12: Top Threats to Cloud Computing + Industry Insights,” a refreshed release to the 2016 report that includes new real-world anecdotes and examples of recent incidents that relate to each of the 12 cloud computing threat categories identified in the original paper.

“It’s our hope that these updates will not only provide readers with more relevant context in which to evaluate the top threats, but that the enhanced paper will provide them with a real-world glimpse into what is currently occurring in the security industry,” said Scott Field, partner architect with Microsoft Corp. and chair of the CSA Top Threats Working Group.

The anecdotes and examples mentioned in this document include:

• Yahoo breach - Data Breaches
• LinkedIn failure to salt passwords when hashing - Insufficient Identity Credential Access Management
• Instagram abuse of account recovery - Insufficient Identity Credential Access Management
• OAuth Insecure implementation - Account Hijacking
• Zynga ex-employees alleged data theft - Malicious Insiders
• Yahoo breach - Insufficient Due Diligence
• MongoDB Mexican voter information leak - Insufficient Identity Credential Access Management
• Dyn DDoS attack - Denial of Service
• Dirty Cow Linux privilege escalation vulnerability - System Vulnerabilities
• T-Mobile customer information theft - Malicious Insiders
• MongoDB unprotected, attacked by ransomware - Insufficient Identity Credential Access Management
• Malware using cloud services to exfiltrate data and avoid detection - Abuse and Nefarious Use of Cloud
• Australian Bureau of Statistics denial of service - Denial of Service
• Virlock ransomware - Data Loss
• Zepto ransomware spread and hosted on cloud storage services - Abuse and Nefarious Use of Cloud
• CloudSquirrel malware hosting command and control (C&C) in Dropbox - Abuse and Nefarious Use of Cloud
• CloudFanta Malware using cloud storage for malware delivery - Abuse and Nefarious Use of Cloud
• Moonpig insecure mobile application - Insecure Interface and APIs
• Cloudflare/Cloudbleed buffer overrun vulnerability - Shared Technology Vulnerabilities
• NetTraveler advanced persistent threats - Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)

The Treacherous 12 report provides organizations with an up-to-date, expert-informed understanding of cloud security concerns in order to make educated risk-management decisions regarding cloud adoption strategies. The report reflects the current consensus among security experts in the CSA community about the most significant security issues in the cloud.

The CSA Top Threats Working Group is responsible for providing needed context to assist organizations in making educated risk management decisions regarding their cloud adoption strategies. The CSA Top Threats Working Group is led by Scott Field, along with long-time cloud security professionals Jon-Michael Brook, a principal/Security, Cloud & Privacy at Guide Holdings, and Dave Shackleford, a principal consultant with Voodoo Security.

The CSA invites interested companies and individuals to support the group’s research and initiatives. Companies and individuals interested in learning more or joining the group can visit the Top Threats Working Group page.